Lenovo has maintained its position as the global number-one manufacturer of PCs, according to the latest figures from research firms IDC and Gartner.

Reporting shipments for the first quarter of 2014, IDC said that Lenovo achieved a 17.7% share of the global PC market, showing 10.5% growth over the same period last year. Gartner, meanwhile, said that Lenovo's market share stood at 16.9%, showing 11% year-on-year growth.

Gartner said that, on the whole worldwide PC shipments declined by 1.7% during Q1 2014, however it added that the market was beginning to show signs of improvement as the impact of tablet PCs begins to fade. Gartner remarked that HP and Dell also managed to grow their businesses in Q1 2014, posting growth of 4.1% and 9% respectively.

Gartner said that the end of Microsoft support of Windows XP had eased the decline of PC shipments in the first quarter.

Company Articles

"All regions indicated a positive effect since the end of XP support stimulated the PC refresh of XP systems. Professional desktops, in particular, showed strength in the quarter," said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner.

"Among key countries, Japan was greatly affected by the end of XP support, registering a 35 percent year-over-year increase in PC shipments. The growth was also boosted by sales tax change. We expect the impact of XP migration worldwide to continue throughout 2014."

However, the research firm cautioned that the PC market continues to be tough for many vendors, as economies of scale continue to play a large part in profitability. The high-volume, low-profit nature of the market was forcing some vendors, such as Sony, out, Gartner said.